PAN-FRIED HAKE WITH BLACK PUDDING AND WHITE WINE SAUCE

This combination of delicate white fish with meaty black pudding, wilted curly kale and tangy white wine sauce is sensational. Hake is similar in texture to cod with a slightly more subtle flavour. It is an excellent sustainable choice, but if you can’t find it at your local fishmonger, it can be substituted with cod or haddock.

Serves 4

3tbsp olive oil

1 white onion, diced

100g (3½oz) black pudding, diced 300g (10½oz) curly kale, tough stalks removed and leaves chopped

4 hake fillets, about 200g (7oz) each, skin on

Zest of 1 lemon, to serve

For the white wine sauce

25g (1oz) butter

2 shallots, sliced

5 black peppercorns

2 bay leaves

100ml (3½fl oz) white wine 400ml (14fl oz) hot fish stock 50ml (2fl oz) double cream Sea salt

First make the white wine sauce. Melt the butter in a pan, add the shallots, peppercorns and bay leaves and sauté over a low heat until the shallots have softened and are beginning to colour, 3-4 minutes. Add the white wine, then bubble and reduce over a medium heat until almost evaporated, about 5 minutes. Pour in the hot stock and bubble until reduced by a third. Strain the sauce through a sieve, pushing the pulp through. Return the sauce to the pan, stir in the cream and simmer for a few minutes to thicken. Remove from the heat, season with salt and set aside.

In another pan, heat 2tbsp of the olive oil, then add the onion and cook gently for 10-15 minutes, stirring, until very soft. Add the black pudding and cook for a further 2-3 minutes until slightly crisp. Add the kale, cover and cook for about 5 minutes or until wilted. Season and keep warm.

In a frying pan, heat the remaining 1tbsp olive oil over a medium heat. Add the hake fillets, skin-side down, and cook for 5 minutes, then turn over and cook for 4-5 minutes more, depending on the thickness, until cooked through. Meanwhile, gently reheat the sauce until hot. Spoon the black pudding and kale mixture on to 4 plates, place the fish on top, then pour the sauce over and sprinkle with lemon zest.